I am Brave and Beautiful – a beauty movement that is sweeping the globe. Colbie Caillatstarted it with her recent song and video called TRY. I came across this inspiring blog post today. I realized that other blogging buddies of mine where posting the same thing and I just had to know what it was all about. It couldn't have come at a more needed time for me. I was just feeling so inadequate this morning. Telling myself I have to do better, be more productive, be prettier. and be skinnier. That I am just not measuring up. The other moms in my new neighborhood just seem to have it all together and are so pretty with their cute outfits, cute clean houses and hair and makeup all done. I try and have a goal of just getting dressed before my kids get home, most days. I was telling myself "No one is going to want to get to know me just the way I am".

And just as I was planning all the ways I needed to change myself I came across this blog post stemming from a project at Brassy Apple calling for women to post pictures of themselves without makeup on. In an effort to spread the message that we are good enough and not to try so hard to be someone else's idea of who we should be.

Megan and her friend Cobi of Peacefrom6pieces have been the team behind this whole project. Their worldwide vision included creating their own video inspired by the song TRY. The talent of Robbins Creative made it possible for them to pull it off. You have to click play and see the beauty and bravery displayed.

Me along with 101+ other blogging women from different backgrounds, religions, ethnicities, ages, shapes and sizes have decided to be Brave and Beautiful! You can join in this movement too by sharing what you look like without makeup on. You don’t need a blog either! Just tag your photo with #IamBraveAndBeautiful on Instgram and search the hashtag to see who else has joined in. ALSO, if you tag it with a second hashtag – #ColbieTRY we just might be able to get Colbie Caillat’s attention since she was the inspiration behind it all!

Are you brave and beautiful? I am, here I go!

The photo I used is actually one I took a few weeks ago. I was playing with my four month old daughter on the floor being super goofy trying to get her to laugh when I suddenly wondered to myself what I look like to her. It was early in the morning and I was still sooooo tired. Not only did I have major bed head and no makeup on I was also still in my pajamas. I was definitely feeling like a hot mess. So out of curiosity I took out my phone and snapped a pic from my babies point of view and what I saw shocked me...

I saw a beautiful happy mommy. This is what my daughter sees when her mommy plays with her or comes to pick her out of her crib.

I thought I would see baggy eyes from lack of sleep, ugly blotchy skin with a rats nest of hair to match. But what stands out the most was the love radiating for my daughter. It blinds out everything else. What a lesson I learned in that moment. This is what matters, these moments. The love I get to share with my beautiful family makes me beautiful and I am good enough. Its so important we continue to remind ourselves where our real value lies and that being happy is productive and beautiful.

“Do you suppose it matters to our Heavenly Father whether your makeup, clothes, hair, and nails are perfect? Do you think your value to Him changes based on how many followers you have on Instagram or Pinterest? Do you think He wants you to worry or get depressed if someone unfriends or unfollows you on Facebook or Twitter? Do you think outward attractiveness, dress size, or popularity make the slightest difference to the one who created the universe? He loves you, not just for who you are this very day, but for the person of glory and light you have the potential and desire to become.” –President Uchtdorf

Don't stop here. Get clicking around - its a blog hop! Below are more brave and beautiful women bearing more than their natural beauty. They each have a little bit of their heart to share with you. Some get very personal. Some share stories. For some this was very hard to do yet they gathered their courage and did it anyway. We hope as you click around (and YES pin these different posts!) you will feel the importance of it, the empowering effect it has and that it encourages you in some way.

>>>>>>>Important info! Blog Hops often have glitches the first day. If the link has an ERROR, simply click on the HOME button for each site, or google the blog name next to the link, and you should see their brave and beautiful post there. Links will be updated as soon as possible.<<<<<<<<<<<<

My beautiful sister has been waiting a long time for a family and someone to love for the rest of her life. No one ever deserved to find the love of her life more than my loving sister. That is why I feel so privileged to be the one who got to do her engagement pictures now that she has met the man of her dreams and his three beautiful children.

My body is so different then it was the first time I had a baby ten years ago when I was in my early twenties compared to what it was this last time with baby number three. In my last trimester there where times I couldn't even walk I was in so much pain from all the pressure on my pelvis and my joints being too loose. It seems that over the course of these pregnancies I have become less and less mobile and the pain has become more and more intense. Within 24 hours after having my little sweetie pie I already felt better and more mobile than I had in six months. I remember the first time I went on a walk after I was pregnant and how much I was in awe of how far I could walk and how tired and good it felt at the same time. And when I went on my first bike ride in over a year I had this incredible moment where I just fell in love with the power of my body. I thought to myself "look what I can do with this body! This body (stretch marks, flabby skin, fat rolls and all) is so amazing!"

This body that has been put through so much (especially in the last year) and it keeps on going! There was this point during this last pregnancy where I thought to myself that I've totally ruined this body, its never going to work the same again. There's no coming back from this, I can't even get up the stairs to make myself a sandwich... time for another nap.

I have a new found respect for my body that Ive never had before. And because of this I want to treat it better and help it be healthier and stronger so I can enjoy it longer. Part of that means doing something active everyday, getting to a healthier weight, reduce sugar intake, do at least one super fun thing a day that I love and start shaving my legs more often now that I can reach them. Oh and download lots of fun apps that will help encourage my new goals.

Right now Im not really ambitious about getting back to pre-baby weight but I do know its important for me to be tracking my weight especially because I found out this last year that I have one of those body types that when I gain weight I gain fat around my organs which is super dangerous. I am also at risk for developing diabetes because I had gestational diabetes with one of my kids. So weight loss isn't just about looking hotter in my jeans it's really important for my over all health. So right now in my first steps I am focusing on getting stronger, trying out new activities, being accountable for my weight and reducing my sugar, and making healthier food choices.

KEEPING IT REAL: OUT OF SHAPE BUT LOVING BEING STRONGER

Being successful at loving my post baby body means making life style choices at an easy pace and making it fun and enjoyable. Don't like working out? Instead explore activities you love and just do them more often. Hate dieting? Make a list of all the healthier food options you love and buy them more often and have them ready instead of the junk food. Also for us moms out there; something that really worked for me was having my family eat the same stuff I was eating. Find lots of yummy healthy recipes and snacks the whole family loves. No one has time to make two dinners.

And last but not least, if you don't feel like you have time to track your weight and progress not only is there an app for that lol, but there is a scale for that!!! Check out my new handy dandy Weight Gurus scale...

This sucker sends my progress (or lack of progress) strait to my smart phone with a quick snap of an app! After I step on the scale it pulls up my weight then it flashes a bar code that my smart phone reads. No more writing down numbers, memorizing or punching in digits. It's so easy! I love it!

When its all said and done getting healthy is great and all but it's important to remember the number on the scale means very little if you don't love yourself and you don't cherish your body. We only have one and it does incredible stuff for us everyday and we've got to give it a little love back. I know as moms we can get caught up in the medias distorted views of beauty and a lot of times we don't feel beautiful especially after a long day with the kids and we are still in our pajamas. And sometimes after having a baby, or three, we look at our battle wounds of stretch marks and think I'll never be the same. Thank god we will never be the same, isn't that the point? I look at where my amazing body has been, and is coming back from! My body is a warrior and these are the marks and traits that tell of it's amazing journey. When it comes to body positivity, being the change I want to see in the world starts with me showing a little more love to myself.

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About me

Maker / Mommy / Deep Lover Of Spaghetti

Every mom has a superpower, a unique strength that she brings to her family and the people around her. My mommy superpower is being a "Maker". I'm always making something whether it's babies, computer graphic designs, home decorating, crafts, new recipes, home renovations, a tree house or just plain making messes.

Making things is so much a part of my being that if I don't make time to create I get sad. So at our house, a crafty mommy is a happy mommy. I even get the kids in on the crafty train as often as I can. I love teaching them new skills and showing them the world. I also make mistakes all the time, but I teach my kids that I'm only human too, just like them. Then I brush myself off and try to do better, try to live in the moment a little bit longer, try to enjoy my little ones a little bit better, try to be patient, try to be kind, and try to love myself a little bit more.

So come along with me and let's celebrate not being perfect and for trying to find the joy in the Everyday.

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